Manny Marin showed a bunt, then took a full swing.
On a night where the bats did not get hot early, they came alive at the right time. Tennessee baseball pieced together a come-from-behind win over the Raiders with a ninth-inning walk-off hit to down Wright State, 4-3.
Tennessee (11-3) managed just six hits in the win — with five and six proving to be the most crucial. Garrett Wright led off the bottom of the ninth with a stand-up double, then Marin struck a single up the gut to bring him home. Marin showed a bunt with the infielder’s crashing, then sent the ball through the middle for the Vols’ second walk-off of the year.
Wright State (4-7) pieced together 10 hits off Tennessee’s pitching staff and held the lead up until the seventh inning.
Tegan Kuhns tagged with hard hits
Wright State jumped out of the gate with hard hits off Tennessee’s Friday night guy.
The Raiders pieced together the first run of the game in the first inning off back-to-back hits, including an RBI double by Hunter Warren to break a scoreless tie in the opening frame.
Kuhns got tagged for three more base hits in the third, resulting in the second run of the game. In the fourth inning, six-hole hitter Patrick Fultz sat on a Kuhns 0-2 pitch, and blasted a no-doubter over the right-field wall.
Brandon Arvidson took over in the sixth inning, ending Kuhns’ day. The sophomore right-handed pitcher allowed a season-high eight hits to the Raiders. He struck out seven batters and did not allow a free pass for the second-consecutive outing. Kuhns threw 60 strikes on 78 pitches.
Vols blow sixth-inning opportunity
Tennessee capped the top of the sixth inning with added juice.
Arvidson faced runners on the corners with one out. He fanned one batter on a 3-2 payoff pitch, then received help from his defense to pick off a double-steal attempt at the plate. The Vols went back to the dugout with the chance to build on the momentum in the home half.
Blake Grimmer came through, blasting his first homer of the year in his second game of the season to bring the Vols within one. Stone Lawless followed with a one-out walk.
Reese Chapman and Levi Clark then killed the rally. Tennessee’s six and seven-hole hitters both struck out swinging, keeping the deficit at a run heading into the seventh inning.
Jay Abernathy
Tennessee cashed in on its misfortunes in the ensuing inning.
A Garrett Wright flyout and a pinch-hitting Tyler Myatt strikeout turned the order to the top for the trailing Vols. Jay Abernathy drew a full-count walk to put a runner aboard, then Henry Ford stood in. Ford blasted a 1-1 pitch over the right fielder’s head. Abernathy, who started at first base, rounded third as the ball made its way to the infield. An off-target throw and an evasive Abernathy created a tie-game equation.
The Vols knotted the score at 3-all in the seventh inning.
Tennessee and Wright State resume with game two of the series on Saturday, March 7, at 3 p.m. ET — moved up in the afternoon with rain in the expected forecast.
